Mannequin
by SassKatt
Summary: After the incident with Incognito, the HellsinG Organization is slowly coming back - but with some unwanted changes. Someone has changed, and certainly not for the better...and a  monster wants revenge.
1. Introduction

Dislcaimer: I do not own HellsinG, nor do I pretend to. All characters belong correctly and legally to Mr. Kouta Hirano. No profit is made from this story.

The smell of smoke and blood filled her senses, mixing with the thick fog that surrounded her thoughts and smeared her vision. She was falling, slowly, of that she was aware. But why was she falling? Snippets of shapes and figures filled her mind, trying to make sense of why.

_A blood red coat._

_ Battle…loosing._

_ Death…immortal._

_ Silver…blessed._

_ Tower…falling._

Something soft and wet made contact with her right side, and she was sure that she had finally hit the ground. Wait…she wasn't supposed to feel. But she could feel something burning inside her – her chest, her heart, her head.

_PAIN._

Immense pain wracked her broken body, and Seras Victoria opened her mouth in a silent scream. It was intensifying by the second, crushing her mind into darkness –

_Cheddar. Just like in Cheddar. I was dying then…_

Thoughts and memories came rushing back to her, clearer than they ever were before. But she was loosing them, letting them slip through her mind like they were shadows.

And the darkness, it was coming, covering her thoughts, claiming her –

_Much like he did._

A smile came unbidden to her lips as she allowed the darkness to close her vision, and weigh down her limbs.

_I loved him._ The faint thought crossed her mind as she slowly sank into the comforting darkness.

_1 month ago_

Seras Victoria sighed heavily, momentarily resting her head against the rough stones of the wall. "Bloody filthy Freaks…" she muttered, closing her eyes for a second of respite. Tonight's mission had been particularly tricky for the young fledgling – since Alucard was not assigned to go along with the unit she was traveling with. Not only did she have to terminate the Freak herself, endangering several soldiers and a commander in the process, but the mental link between her Master and herself had remained silent for the entire evening. That in itself had put pressure on Seras, for she knew that the mission was one that her Master was 'grading' her on.

It was all part of a new training program that Integra had ordered Alucard to start. After the incident with Incognito and the conspiracy against the Hellsing Organization discovered, the charges against Integra had been dropped and she was allowed to return to the Hellsing Estate. Upon her return though, Integra had not been the same. She was more demanding and harsh with her troops, ordering tougher drills and training regiments. Even being a fledgling vampire had not stopped Integra from pushing Seras harder. The once kind, but fridged leader of Hellsing was gone – and replaced with one that seemed to grow closer to the monster that Alucard was every day.

Sighing again, Seras opened her eyes, and pushed herself away from the stone wall. Turning, the police girl continued walking down to the lower levels of the mansion, her heavy footsteps echoing down the empty hall. Thoughts of the battle that night filled Seras's mind as she continued to head toward her bedroom.

_She had been careless. Twenty infantry men were already in the building, and shots and screams were heard from every open window. She could smell the blood – both vampiric, ghoul, and human – and she could smell the burning flesh of the incendiary rounds that Sir Hellsing had ordered be used for this mission. She couldn't stand here and wait for the signal…something had to be done now, or else more men would die. She had seen more than her fair share of watching and hearing her fellow men being slaughtered – both during the Valentine brother's raid, and Incognito's confrontation at the Tower of London. So she rushed in, heedless of those around her and ignoring the shouts of her commander, following her vampiric senses to the Freak. _

_ And what a chase it had been. _

_ He had lead her through the building all of twice before he escaped – jumping out into the street. She had gotten a lucky shot in then, just from the small fire escape hatch on the third floor. One single bullet to the head as the Freak was about to dismember her commander._

_ She knew she had been careless, and stupid. _

_ Leave it up to the girl nicknamed Kitten to keep her human tactics while hunting Freaks, when time and time again her Master told her to leave them all behind. She was a vampire now, not a human, and she had better learn how to use her vampiric senses beyond her sensitive smell, sight, and hearing. _

_ Seras needed to change, but she was afraid too. And if her Master found out about that.. well, she didn't want to think about that now. _

Reaching her room, Seras opened the thick metal door, only to close it loudly behind her. Looking out at her barely furnished room, Seras began her usual routine after battles. Her torn and bloodstained uniform hit the ground in a trail following her wake – only to be joined by a pair of boots, gloves, and whatever underwear she had picked out that day. In gathering her toiletries and robe, Seras headed toward the washroom off to the left of her bedroom. She found it amusing that she wound up having her own bathroom – even though she was dead and certainly didn't need it anymore. Apparently, Walter had that particular bathroom built a long time ago – even before Seras had been turned and joined the ranks of Hellsing. Perhaps this massive room of concrete walls buried beneath the soil of Hellsing Manor had once been Walter's when he was younger and had worked alongside Alucard – but Seras would never know. Unless she asked.

Seras giggled at the thought of asking the old, kindly retainer of the mansion about the mysterious private bathroom attached to her room. But those giggles soon died as she entered the washroom, and turned on the light.

She hated this part of the day. Opposite of the door, there was a full length mirror hanging on the wall. Since she was a vampire, Seras had no reflection. But she imagined what she would see anyway. She would see paler than normal skin spattered with blood and dust, her short, spiky blonde hair now dulled by the days events. Her heart-shaped face would bare smudges and minor cuts, and her larger than normal blood-red eyes would stare straight back at her. But it was her pink bow tie lips that covered her tiny, cat-like fangs, the one thing that truly marked her as a vampire.

Turning away from the mirror, Seras shook the thoughts from her head as she began her shower.


	2. Chapter 1: So it begins

Integra Fairbrook Wingates Hellsing was sitting at her desk; case files spread open before her. Her white blonde hair fell around her like a curtain, only letting the smoke from her cigarillo through the pristine strands. She had felt him as he entered, even though he had not spoken a word.

"Report."

"Master," Alucard bowed to the Hellsing. "Seras Victoria is guilty of carelessness and endangering lives during the mission. She was able to terminate the Freak – but only after letting him and his ghouls kill ten of our men. Also, Commander Jonson sustained wounds from the Freak, even though he was not near the battle."

Piercing blue eyes glanced up from the desk to regard the vampire. "He is not in danger of being turned?"

Alucard lowered his head, hiding a smile. "This time, no. Seras was able to kill the Freak before he bit him."

Silence stretched on as Integra drew a puff from her cigarillo. She slowly sat back in her chair, her aging face now exposed to the dim light in the room. The years spent locked up in the Queen's dungeon were written in the lines that showed across Integra's face – the Hellsing leader had endured many a hardship, but not one could compare to the ordeal she had dealt with by being betrayed, and blamed for the results.

"Master? What shall you have me do with the police girl?"

Integra exhaled, watching the smoke dissipate in front of her. "This is the second time she let things get a little out of hand, yes?"

"Yes Master."

"And you reprimanded her for the last one?"

"Yes, Master. I believe that area is still tender for her, even though she's been drinking her blood."

"Good. This time, reprimand her correctly." Integra reached out, and closed one the case files. "She needs to learn to become more like you. I can no longer have these little 'incidents' that she keeps getting into."

Alucard stiffened slightly, then relaxed his stance as his famous Cheshire grin spread across his face. "Yes…Master. The world does need more monsters like me." He bowed slightly, than sank into the floor.

Integra stared at the spot where Alucard had disappeared. Snapping herself out of her reverie, she leaned forward over the desk once again, looking at the few open cases she had left. "Yes…more monsters. More proper handling of Freaks. And if no more monsters can be found…well, they don't deserve to be monsters."

Alucard sank into his chambers. Walking over the single ornate chair and table that made up of the room's furnishings, he proceeded to sit. He did not like what his Master had been ordering him to do, lately. The Police Girl was naïve, yes, but she did not deserve the harsh punishments that Integra had become so found of giving out. The last punishment he had given Seras she had promptly pushed to the back of her thoughts – in hopes of forgetting them. He did not wish to give these punishments to his fledgling, but he had no choice in the matter. If he did not…he risked himself being starved and locked away in the same manner Integra had found him years ago.

Something needed to be done.

His servitude for the Hellsing family had gone on long enough – and he had certainly had more than his fair share of mistreatment from the family. He was a noble, after all, and being submitted to such menial tasks of exterminating his own kind had brought him to the brink of insanity more than once. Centuries of servitude…and the one person whom Alucard had taken a liking too of all the Hellsing line had changed – and not for the better.

"She's going down a path she never wanted to go down." He mused, his deep baritone voice echoing in soft whispers around the spacious room. "Things must change…but in their own time. If they don't…well…she might get what I had become under the servitude of Abraham Van Hellsing – but with Seras." A rumbling laughter echoed throughout the room.

"Then, then she will have her Monster! Yes….yes…."

Shadows in the room grew and lengthened, obscuring the figure on the lone chair and leaving him to his thoughts.

Seras had finished her shower in record time. Cleaned now from the blood and dust that had covered her earlier – the little vampress dressed herself in a soft cotton nightshift, and after putting her toiletries in the proper places, she proceeded to move to her desk. Opening a drawer, Seras pulled out a sketchbook and a pencil. She had taken to drawing when she was human, and even more now that she was going to be alive for eternity. It was a simple pastime she had developed to help the days blend together – so as to not get bored easily. Besides, she knew what her Master was like when he was bored.

Speaking of her Master, Seras smiled sweetly as she turned to a page where she had wound up drawing her Master early one evening. She had drawn Alucard on the balcony of the Hellsing Manor, full moon shining down on him. She had dressed him in a simple poets' shirt and black slacks, with a wine cup held carelessly in his left hand, his right resting on the railing. His shoulder-length black hair was obscuring half of his sharp, royal face, but there was one thing different. Seras had somehow drawn emotion into Alucard's eyes – those blood red eyes that seemed bloodthirsty and cruel. No, they were not like that. They were soft, gazing back at Seras in almost a loving manner, one that made the Prince seem…human.

Sighing, Seras gently ran her hand over the drawing. "Why do all the handsome men in history go bad?"

"Well I certainly do not know for sure, Miss Victoria, but it could be the factor of all that power they held back in those times."

Seras squeaked and dropped her sketchbook at the sudden voice. Turning, the fledgling let out an unnecessary breath. "Goodness, Walter, you scared me half to death."

The Hellsing Manor's old retainer, Walter Dornez, stood at the door to Seras's room, two ice buckets held in either hand. "I do apologize, Miss Victoria, I should have knocked."

Seras smiled at the gentleman. "It's fine, Walter. Did you bring dinner?"

Walter held up one of the buckets. "Yes. Two blood packets, as ordered by Integra."

"Thank you, Walter."

"Your very welcome, Miss Victoria." Walter bowed to the young vampress. "If I may suggest something?"

Seras tilted her head at the butler. "Yes?"

Setting down the bucket, Walter leaned down and picked up the sketchbook. "Next time you wish to capture Alucard in the shadows, I suggest using charcoal. It's quite a good medium for such drawings."

If Seras could still blush, the little draculina would have certainly been doing so. Sheepishly looking down, Seras extended her hand. "Thank you, Walter. I'll certainly try to remember such things next time."

Walter smiled as he handed back the sketchbook. "Oh, don't be shy about such things, Miss Victoria. You certainly have a talent."

"Oh, goodness Walter, please!"

"You have no reason to be embarrassed with me, Miss Victoria. However, I would be very careful that Miss Integra or Alucard do not see your work." Walter winked at the girl. "They just might see it as good work and decided to sell some under the company's name."

Seras giggled at the thought. "Goodness me, then I won't be fighting Freaks anymore, but spending my eternal life drawing!"

Walter smiled at the remark. "Well, Miss Victoria, I wish you luck as you continue your drawing in secret. I must continue with my duties." Turning, Walter proceeded to heard toward the door.

"Oh, Walter?"

The elderly butler turned. "Yes, Miss Victoria?"

"Could you please tell Master that I would like to see him tonight?"

A slender, black eyebrow raised in response. "Planning to give him his rendition in your hand?"

"Oh, no – nothing like that…I just would like to talk to him for a little bit."

Walter turned to go. "Well then, Miss Victoria, you can summon him yourself. You do not need me for such trivial things." With that said, Walter disappeared down the empty corridor.

"Oh." Seras paused, puzzling for a moment. If she were to call her Master, would he already know why she wanted to talk to him? Shaking her head, Seras tried to push the thoughts of a furious Alucard from her mind. Taking a look at the gentle drawing clutched within her grasp, Seras took a deep breath, and mentally called out for her Master.

Please be kind, rewind/review.


	3. Chapter 2: Of Masters and Monsters

He felt the tug before he responded. One red eye lazily cracked open to survey the vast emptiness of his chambers before he considered responding. She had such a gentle touch, so timid and quiet -

_Master? Are you there?_

Once again, he felt the tug. _So sweet, so pure -_ he mused, the one eye sliding shut again. He could remeber the taste of her blood when he first turned her - the intoxicating sent, the overwhelming sweetness of virginity - and tonight, tonight he wanted more.

_**Yes, police girl? **_

_Master, may we talk? I know I didn't do to well tonight - _

Before Seras could finish her thought, she felt him behind her. _Always the dramatic entrances, _she mused, closing the sketchbook in her hands and turning to face the towering man behind her.

"Why, thank you, police girl." Alucard smirked, leaning forward slightly to gaze as his fledgling. "You've been a very bad girl this evening."

Placing the sketchbook on the single desk that marked the only other furnishing in her room besides her coffin and wardrobe, Seras slowly raised her eyes to look at her Master. He was casually dressed tonight - his trademark red duster and hat were left wherever he had phased from. He had also left his sunglasses as well, leaving the tall royal dressed only in his charcol suit and ascot. A singular thought struck her mind - he looked quite, how could she put it, dashing? No, no - that wasn't quite right -

"Dapper?" Alucard answered. Seras squeaked, and covered her mouth, her ruby eyes growing wide. A small amount of blood rushed to her cheeks, giving the pale vampress the illusion of blushing. Alucard chuckled. "You practially scream your thoughts at me, police girl. Tch. Tch."

Seras ducked her head at the chiding tone in her Master's voice. "I know - I'm not very good at this thing." _I don't think I ever will be either..._a deep chuckle stopped the train of thought.

"Of course you will. You just need to learn, and stop trying to be something your not." Alucard stepped closer to his fledgling, reaching out a gloved hand toward her. Seras visibly flinched and stepped backward, closer to the wall. "You need to stop trying to remain human." Alucard spat out the last word, "and embrace the fact that you are a monster."

Seras gasped, her eyes flying up to meet her Master's. "I'm not a monster! You are!" Alucard laughed, his deep baritone voice echoing against the bare walls of her room.

"If I'm a monster, than you are too." the outstreched hand moved, and Seras eyed it warily as it came up to her face. One white, tapered finger reached out and tapped her on her nose. "You do forget who created you."

Seras bowed her head. "I'm sorry Master. I know I should be better, and that I was really stupid in my actions tonight. But I don't know where to start -"

"Drink." The tone in her Master's voice caused the small draculina to look up, her eyes connecting with the blood red orbs that were her Master's. "Drink. My. Blood." Seras mewed slightly as she recognized the harsh, unforgiving edge of the deep voice.

"Master -" she stammered, "I can't do it, I just can't!"

A low growl reached her ears as Alucard began to move. Seras swallowed hard as her Master stepped closer. "Please, Master...I didn't mean to - I'm trying to be better, I really am, I just..."

Alucard continued to move closer, his movements as graceful as a cat cornering its prey. "What, police girl? You're sorry that you can't do it? That does not cut it in our world, servant - you must pay for actions you take."

Seras yelped as her back connected with the wall. _Please, god, NO - not again, anything but that again -_ her stomach twitched in memory of the intense pain of the last time she was in this predicament. She had not seen the last punishment coming, and her Master had given her a taste of what it was to be his enemy. _Oh please god, NOT AGAIN..._ her eyes slid shut, and Seras mentally prepared herself for pain. Soft fabric caressed her ear, making the girl jump. Her eyes flew open to meet the intense stare of her Master.

"Master...?" Seras stuttered, confusion written across her features. The man leaned forward, his cheek level with hers, his nose gently touching the shell of her ear.

"I can smell you, _draga_..." his deep baritone voice was smooth and soft, sending shivers down the small woman's neck. "_Si tu asa miros dulce." _Seras gasped, her eyes wide. Her stomach tightned, however this time not in anticipation of pain, but pleasure.

"Master - Master please - " Seras begged, her breathing beginning to hitch. "I don't understand, I'm supposed to be punished, right?" The soft fabric moved from her ear down her neck, pausing at the two small, round scars that graced her porcelian skin.

"_De ce crezi ca as vrea sa faca vreun rau voi, tinerii unul_?"

"Master? I can't understand, I don't speak your language...Master?" Seras strained to look at Alucard beside her, her eyes catching only the strands of midnight hair that threatned to caress her cheek.

"_Draga mea..._" soft lips brushed the lobe of her ear, causing Seras to jump. Her stomach twitched again, this time as a tendril of warmth shot low, spreading a relaxing heat between her hips. Seras's breath caught in her throat, her eyes rolling gently upward. This was not something her Master would do, this was not Alucard, this was - this was _him_.

"Vladimir -" Seras breathed the name from between her lips, her body relaxing into the male that had her pinned against the wall. In a spilt second, she was slammed against said wall, a gloved hand cruelly tightned against her pale throat. Her hands immeadiatly flew to the offending hand, trying to remove the crushing force. All pleasure that she had experienced in the last few seconds fled her body as her muscles tightened in expectation of pain. Frightened eyes locked with the deep pools of red that glared menacingly back at the small woman.

"You have_** no right **_to call me by that name." Alucard ground out, his voice sending tendrils of fear into Seras's still heart, his hand tightening further on her throat. "I could crush you for your impudence! You. Have. NO. RIGHT."

Seras's eyes widened further, and she opened her mouth to apologize. No sound emitted from her crushed windpipe, and her small hands twisted around the cold wrist that held her againt the wall. _Master, Master please! I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm so so sorry! I didn't mean to, I - _

"**Quiet**." The offending hand squeezed her throat tighter as if to silence her mental cascade, and Seras's eyes rolled back as she felt her vertebra crack, her windpipe and esphogus already crushed. She gently let go of her Master's wrist, letting her hands fall limp to her side. She could feel the blood tears beginning to come to her eyes as the pain begin to set in, yet she refused to let them fall in front of her Master. He was only doing what he was supposed to, he was only punishing her because she deserved it.

_It's my fault..._the single thought formed in her brain as she blinked away the moisture that threatened to fall.

_**Yes. **_Came the reply, and Alucard promptly removed his hand. Seras crumpled to the floor, her hands flying to her damaged neck. Alucard scowled at the cowering fledgling before him. He had come to his fledgling when she called in the hopes of beginning to place his plan into motion, and wanting to drink of her sweet blood again. Yet she had gone and crossed a dangerous line, putting the eternal monster in a foul mood. Casting a sickened look at the small drauclina before him, Alucard spoke one sentence before he dissapeared that caused Seras's blood to run cold. The small vampress stared at the spot where her Master phased, and let the blood tears come freely as his last comment rang through her brain.

"I should have never turned you."

Please be kind, rewind/review.

Translations:

draga - Dear

Si tu miros dulce - And you smell sweet

De ce crezi ca as vrea sa faca vreun rau voi, tinerii unul - Why would I want to harm you, young one

Draga mea - my dear


	4. Chapter 3: Games

Alucard stalked down the hallway, his boots making sharp noises against the stone floor. His foul demeanor radiated outward, both on the emotional plane and tangibly, in the form of shadows whipping menacingly around his body. He was livid. The police girl was not supposed to cross that line - a line that struck a cord with a deep emotion that was hidden for centuries. The count growled audiably as he continued his trek down the hallway, causing frightened servants and military men to scatter before him like rats. He was on a mission to have something done right tonight - and he needed help. Damn if his fledgling was ever going to grow up and play a part in the scheme he had raised - he needed the innocent vampress. She was a key element. However, if she continued to be stupid and cause trouble - the count paused on his mental rampage, as a blurry image appeared in his brain.

_He saw the three of them crowded around the sleeping form on the couch, the youngest and most fair of all about to sink her fangs into the young soliciter's neck. His rage sparked, how dare they! He, who fed them and kept them happy, disobeying his direct orders! The count moved forward at inhuman speeds, wrapping his hand around the blonde's throat. Wide blue eyes turned to regard him, fear evident within their depths._

_ "You yourself have never loved!" The harsh words fell from her pretty lips and rang in the count's brain, the cruel laughter cutting his heart deeply. _

Alucard stopped, glancing down at the hand that had, just moments ago, been wrapped around the police girls' neck. He clenched the hand as his heart burned at the memory. Never again. The nosferatu bit back a menacing growl - and continued his rampage down the hall.

The elderly butler sensed the vampire before he even entered the kitchen. Unphased, Walter did not look up as the count burst into the room, slamming the door behind him. The angel continued to carefully remove his steaming tray of crumpets from the oven, and only glanced at the count once he had the cakes safely on their respective hotpads.

"Can I help you, Alucard?" The butler asked, turning his cool gaze upon the raging vampire.

Alucard glared back at the man who stood across the counter. Despite having lines of age on his face, there was no grey evident in the retainer's hair, nor did his body tell of aging. "Drop the facade, Walter. I need no parlor tricks tonight."

"As you wish." The butler bowed. As he rose from his bow, the lines dissapeared from his flesh, revealing a face that was youthful, yet ancient. Large, industrial wings shimmered into view on the angels back; gears, cogs and pipes creating the bone structure. What represented the feathers, however, were the gossamear strands that Walter so diligently fought with - his 'dental floss of doom' as the police girl had put it one evening. "What requires this revealing of one's nature, Count? I certainly cannot fathom what you need from an old angel."

The count cracked a smile. "I need your help." The statement caused a slender eyebrow to be raised.

"Help? For what?" The angel instinctively reached back to his wings, grabbing a few of the silky appearing strands. Alucard chuckled at Walter - and the angel's willingness for fighting. Casually moving forward, Alucard pulled up a chair from the table, seating himself in it. Seeing that the count was not preparing for battle, Walter let go of the wire strands, and turned his attention back to his crumpets.

"I grow weary and tired with these games, _**Azra'il**_."

The tone of voice that the Count spoke that sentence, along with the use of his true name, caused the angel to turn his full attention to the royal. "I have not heard that name in a very, very long time, Vladimir." Azra'il replied silkly. His grey eyes locked onto blood red, and regarded the vampire with a cool gaze of murderous intent.

Vladimir chuckled. "Welcome back. I was beginning to believe that you were too far gone in your role."

"What made you think that?" Azra'il scoffed, gently pushing the tray of crumpets to the side, so he could lean on the table, gaze fixed on the vampire. Vladimir let his gaze move over to the crumpets, then pointedly back to the angel. "Oh," Azra'il raised his eyebrows, "cooking is enjoyable. I do like that."

Vladimir tossed back his head and laughed. Once his mirth had died down, the vampire turned back to the angel. "I have a propsition for you."

Immeadiatly Azra'il's gaze turned steely. "What games are you playing now, Count?"

A fanged grin met the sharp grey gaze.

"A game of freedom."

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><p>Seras did not know how long she lay there curled up on the stone floor, blood tears flowing from her eyes. She could feel the sticky coldness that clung to her skin, the remainder of her once white cotton nightshift. If she had been of sound mind, she would have been disgusted at how much blood had been absorbed by her clothing. However, the young vampress was numb to the idea, as the only words occupying her mind were the last ones spoken by her Master. In fact, Seras was numb to the world. She did not notice the cold seeping into her skin from the stone floor, nor did she notice the rising of the sun. The police girl lay there crumpled - a shell of human nature as her mind raced to try and grasp what tendrils of sanity were left from the harsh words her Master had spoken.<p>

_Why Master, Why? _Her mind repeated over and over again, searching for an answer within the numbness. _Am I that disposable to you?_ _Was I ever seen as anything more than a plaything?_

_No – just a tool_. A soft voice whispered in the back of Seras's mind.

_But I'm not a tool! I'm a human being! _Seras whined back at her subconscious.

_Are you really?_

_Yes! _Seras cried. _I'm human! I've always been human! Master can't see that, and he can't understand…and…_

_He was once human._

Abruptly Seras stopped. Her subconscious was right. Master was the Count, the Count was human, he had a history. He had grown up, just like she had, he had experienced emotions – he must understand then why she couldn't drink blood, especially his, it just wasn't human…

_But you're not human._ Her subconscious whispered. _You're a mad monster._

_I'm not mad! _Seras huffed back.

_But you're a monster. _

_No! _

_Look at yourself._

_What?_

Seras felt her bones creak in protest as she slowly lifted her stiff form off the floor. Muscles screamed in pain as she rose unsteadily – wobbly making her way to the bathroom. Her body lurched to a halt in front of the large mirror that reflected her bedroom.

_Do you see? _Her subconscious cut in.

_See what?_ _I see nothing._

_Exactly. You have no soul. You are not human anymore._

With a gasp, Seras realized she was right. Her brain whirred into motion as things clicked, pieces making sense, powers, abilities – all adding up to one thing. She was no longer human.

"I can't be human anymore." Seras whispered out loud in the darkness of her room. "I'm holding onto something I'm not."

_I am not human. _

In that moment, the words that her Master had spoken faded into nothing, as Seras's mind came to fully understand what was happening. The solo missions, the cruelty, the harsh punishments and nasty remarks, everything in the past months began to make sense.

"He's teaching me!" With almost a giddy hop, Seras whirled around, taking in the view of her room, then whipped back to see the same reflection in the mirror. "I'm being taught!" A mad giggle escaped from her tiny lips. "Well, I am pretty pathetic, so I do need taught…I wonder what Master would say if I started to drink blood?" Seras cracked a grin that was reminiscent of her masters.

And with that realization – a little bit of her humanity slipped away.

Please be kind and rewind/review!


	5. Chapter 4: Memories and Lessons

Hello all! Just a friendly reminder that this is a work of fanfiction that is rated M - this means, Mature, and 18 (or 17 in some places) and over are allowed to read. Please be advised that this rating is due to the violence in nature, as well as the tall glasses of lemonade and lemon drops/cakes/slices that will be served.

Thank you all for reading!

~ SassKatt

* * *

><p>The day that followed was anything but ordinary within the Hellsing walls. An ancient monster sat in a kitchen with an immortal angel, plotting and planning as the hours of daylight passed by unnoticed. A young monster was in her room, dancing with glee at her new found revelation, creating a work of art on her floor with her feet and own coagulated blood. But up in the towers, a cold queen who ruled her little castle was brooding - for something was weighing heavily on her mind. She stood at the window, watching the sun pass through the sky as she shrouded herself in smoke. On her desk lay a single paper file, the pages and pictures scattered across the usually prim and pristine surface. She knew what she had done was a simple and stupid mistake – focusing too much on one thing. Her father would have been furious with what she had let slip, as she was furious with herself for not noticing sooner. Her time within the Queen's dungeon should have made her realize her stupidity – yet she was still caught up in the events that had nearly leveled London and the fantasy that she had lived in for years.<p>

"Is it too late?" the blonde wondered out loud in the room. She took another drag from her cigarillo and breathed deep, rolling the question on her tongue. As she exhaled, the smoke curled comfortingly around her, as if soothing her for the answer. _Father would have said yes, and used outside sources to quell things before they would get out of hand – and the cycle would continue, _her brain answered. It was a cruel thing, this cycle her family lead. To use one of the most powerful monsters – once a powerful warlord who was a prince, and sank to a count to hide himself from the world – to eradicate his kind. _But not just that_, a cold smile worked its way across her lips.

"No, it's not too late." the answer rang within the hollow room.

* * *

><p>"You are cruel, Vladimir." Walter narrowed his eyes at the man who sat before him. A cheshire grin greeted his gaze.<p>

"Cruel? That's a new one I have not heard from you, angel. Mad, yes – but never cruel."

Walter eased his sore elbows off of the kitchen table. After leaning on them for several hours while the vampire outlined an elaborate scheme, the retainer was beginning to feel some discomfort. "I seem to recall a man who was once so cruel that the Church itself was bent on condemning him for all eternity for his crimes." Immediately the smile vanished.

"Watch where you tread, angel." The growl that emanated from the man was laced with promises of pain.

"I cannot, and will not." Walter replied. "You forget, _Voivode_, that I was there when you lost yourself to the madness." Cool grey eyes studied the broiling red that was across the table, and watched as the red pools flicked through emotions of hatred and anger.

"Are you begging for a fight?" Alucard ground out at the angel's statement, his usually deep baritone now darker, and dripping with power. He could feel the tendrils of Walter's strings wrapping around his ankles as the angel nonchalantly inspected his fingernails.

"No. I want no fight. However, I will do all I can to prevent this cruelty that you have in mind. Remember, _Vlad Dracula_, that _salvation_ is not what she needs." Walter's gentle voice spat out the last bit of sentence, as if it was a poison. With a roar, Alucard rose from his seat, slamming his white gloved hands upon the table.

"You forget your place, servant of Hellsing!" he yelled, tendrils of darkness rising from his form. The vampire barely felt the strings around his ankles tighten, and the gentle caress of more that snaked about his form. Walter turned his attention from his hand to the monster that seethed before him. The angel's face regarded no emotion, just cool collection. Yet the deep grey eyes held such malice it could have been rivaled by the blood red orbs across the table.

"And you forget…_voivode_…the salvation you brought upon your people. They still whisper about it today, the travesty that was forced upon innocents. The whispers linger – and not just here on earth. You forget, Vladimir, that I was assigned to you for those crimes that you committed." Walter pointed a single finger at the vampire. The voice that followed was nothing like the angel, who so diligently and happily went about his work within the manor. No, the voice that emanated from the body of the retainer was a voice that even Alucard was surprised to hear.

"THERE. IS. NO. GREATER. TASK. THAN. TO. FOLLOW. DEATH. ITSELF."

Immediately all anger the vampire held toward the angel was nullified as his vision blurred. A memory came unbidden to the surface – one that he had forgotten since he was young. He knew what the angel was doing, and it was far past the time that he had remembered such things. The monster had let himself slip into comfort, and forgot all that he was – just a servant to a family that had seen his weakness and defeated him once. But there was more to the story, and more to him that was just beneath the barrier that a name held over him…

_A young Vlad Dracul-a was standing in a frozen courtyard, staring at a young blonde boy who lay naked, chest down, on the flagstones. He saw a form kneel near the boy's buttocks, and reach between the legs to slash at something. In slow motion Vlad watched as the boy reacted, lifting his head and screaming to the heavens. But that was only the beginning. Vlad could feel his heart pick up speed as a large, well oiled pole came into view, sliding between the boys' legs, and into his body. He watched as the boy's mouth opened in primal screams of pain, yet no sound issued within the bubble of the memory. It seemed an eternity as Vlad watched the boy's prolonged torture, his excitement growing at each inch that slid into the boy. He had finally understood, and the death of this boy had brought his revelation. Soon the pole was raised to the sky, the body of the boy slipping down its well oiled surface until the end protruded from his slack mouth. His feet were then grabbed and hastily nailed to the pole, as if in mock crucifixion. The young prince had not once taken his eyes off of the boy, and when his vision was graced with the form upon the pole, the young prince been lost, and he knew that this was his salvation. _

Alucard's vision cleared as the memory faded, as did his malice toward the man who stood before him. "That memory was never one of my favorites." The soft sentence slid from between the thin lips of a ragged prince, a man who had been defeated twice – once for his country and another for his life. He slowly sank back into the chair which he had moments ago burst up from, letting his lean form sag into it. The angel across the table watched as the fire within the blood orbs died, replaced by hollow pools. White gloved hands rose to cover the aristocratic face.

"What have I become?"

Walter had to strain to hear the mumbled question from the husk of a prince that sat before him.

"You became what you needed to be for your country, and for you."

"My country…"

"Vlad – if this plan is enacted, you can go home. We can all go home. But do you want to leave behind another legacy that speaks of such madness?"

The white gloved hands slid down, revealing the eyes that were hollow moments ago. Yet what burned within them was the spirit of a man who had embraced his madness long ago and had let it consume him.

"Yes."

* * *

><p>Seras did not know when she had collapsed into her bed, and neither did she know when she had fallen asleep. What she did know was that when she had awoken, her nightshift as well as her feet and bed were covered in her own, crusted blood.<p>

"Oh! EW!" The young vampress exclaimed, jumping up from the blood strewn sheets. "Oh god, it's everywhere – what happened?" Her eyes swept around her room, surveying the new décor of rust colored footprints. She recalled summoning her master, and that he had said something to her…but what? Hard as she tried, Seras could not seem to remember.

"Did we fight…?" The woman questioned to the barely furnished room. "Is that why there's so much blood?" Quickly lifting her nightshift, Seras set about inspecting her body to see if there was any physical damage. Neither bruise nor cut graced the soft porcelain skin.

"Dammit! What in the bloodly hell happened!" Seras cursed, stamping her bare feet on the stone floor. Huffing, she set about gathering her toiletries and stomped off to her bathroom, slamming open the door and throwing about the clothes she had decided to wear as well as her wash things. She almost didn't notice the reflection in the mirror. It had caught the corner of her eye as she had swept past it in order to turn on the water, a small glimpse of brown in the reflected room. Confused, Seras slowly backed up – until she stood before the mirror. She gasped at the reflection she saw. The nightshift she wore floated in the middle of the mirror, nothing holding it up within the reflection. Yet the blood trails on her skin were visible as well, and she could see plainly that she had been crying.

"I was…crying?" Seras gently reached up to touch her cheek. Her fingers came in contact with a hard crusty substance – the remainder of her tears. "What happened to me?" Seras wondered aloud – stepping forward to gently stoke the surface of the mirror, leaving tiny flakes of dark blood on its pristine surface. Turning away from the odd reflection, Seras continued with her plans to shower as her brain began to mull over the odd events. As she stripped her soiled nightshift from her body, the warmth of the steam began to fill the room, causing goosebumps to rise on her creamy skin. She sighed in happiness at she stepped into the warmth of the water, and soon her brain was happy to forget anything but the feeling of the warmth on her skin.

It was nearly an hour later that Seras finally emerged from the bathroom – her skin flushed from rigorous scrubbing. She had forgotten all about trying to find out what had happened last night while she was enjoying getting clean, but as soon as she opened the door from the bathroom the events that happened came crashing back. Dozens of bloody footprints were all about her room, and her bed seemed as if something, or someone, was murdered in it.

"Ugh, god." Seras wrinkled her nose. "I'm going to get crap from Walter about this one." Sighing heavily, the young lady gingerly made her way around the footprints, trying hard not to step on any and get her clean feet dirty again. Her goal was the laundry basket sitting forlornly in the corner and after an intricate dance – she finally reached her goal. After dumping her soiled nightshift inside, the vampress turned to regard her room and possibly come up with a plan to start cleaning, since she certainly wasn't going to get any answers from herself about what happened. As she raked her eyes slowly across the room, her vision settled on a plain bucket that sat near her dinner table chair.

_The blood._

Her eyes widened slightly. She had forgotten about it! _Is there any…_ the thought trailed off as Seras's brain began to think of scenarios to explain the macabre context of her room. _Did I throw a tantrum? Is this the blood from those packets? Did I – oh god! – did I drink it?_ Trembling slightly, Seras padded over to the pail. Holding breathe that was unnecessary, she leaned over to peek into it. The ice had melted long ago, and the clear water that remained showed two red packets at the bottom.

"Oh thank god." Seras sighed in relief. No sooner than she did though, her tummy gave a slight rumble. Biting her bottom lip with a single cat-like fang, Seras leaned over to regard the red packs again. Her tummy rumbled once more, with a little more force. _Well…I guess I AM hungry…_her brain kicked in, and she unconsciously licked her pink lips. Her eyes locked onto the red substance, and without her realizing it, she began to lean forward and reach…

With a gasp, Seras jerked back. "No! No no no no no! I can't! I won't!" She screeched into the emptiness of her room.

_Ah, but you will._

To her horror, Seras watched as her own hand reached down into the bucket and picked up a packet. Her lips parted in anticipation, her fangs extending slightly as the packet moved closer to her mouth. Her eyes grew wide at she felt the plastic touch her nose, and she let out a small squeak as her mouth closed around the pouch and her fangs pierced it.

_Told you so._ Her subconscious smiled as it felt the first draws of the life it needed to survive. _And now you will see why you need to let go._

Seras moaned in happiness as she sucked the pouch dry, her body beginning to feel more alive and lithe, due to the nourishing meal. She eagerly tossed the empty pack away and grabbed its twin residing in the pail, savagely tearing at its corner to reach the sustenance within. She never felt so good! It was as if she were eating a favorite food when she was human, the taste and feel of it revitalizing her mind and body. When that pack was drained, Seras happily tossed the remainder away as well, and sank down to the floor, licking her fingertips of any remnants and feeling sated. As she slowly came back down from the euphoria of feeding, Seras began to notice things. First, her vision seemed sharper than before. She could make out a crack in the wall that was so tiny, no human eye could have discovered its presence. She could also hear the people in the halls above her – so many floors above! It was as if they were in her hallway, the sounds were so clear.

"Wow…"Seras whispered to herself. She never knew it was like this. "I guess it is important to eat now and again." Smiling, Seras knew that she had done something good. Yet somewhere, in the back of her brain, something grew a little weaker. Seras's smile vanished as a fleeting feeling of something wrong crossed her brain, but disappeared as soon as she tried to move. Seras squealed in ecstasy, and collapsed back into the position she had sank to on the floor.

"What the hell?" Seras gasped. Slowly raising an arm, Seras shivered at the contact the clothing she had picked out rubbed against her skin. "Are my senses heightened that much?" She wondered aloud. Trying the same movement again, Seras got the same result – her skin sang with pleasure as the cloth rubbed against it.

"Oh…" The young vampress bit her lip, and pondered what to do. All her senses were heighted to the extreme right now, and it seemed as movement caused her clothing to rub against her skin, which happened to be heightened to the sense of touch. _I guess it was because I ate finally…maybe it will go away in a bit. But – it feels so good…_

Seras had never been the type of girl to experiment in the ways of pleasure. Sure, there had been a few evenings in her police days where a good romance novel had let her imagination run wild and she had rubbed herself down there a few times while daydreaming – but nothing felt quite like this. She never really could say that she experienced an orgasm either, being a virgin when she was turned at all that. Blushing, Seras couldn't help but think of what a pitiful sight she must be, collapsed on the floor in a heap because she was too self-conscious to move after feeding. She didn't know it was going to cause side effects like this! Her master should have warned her about this type of thing, the bastard. But that was typical of him; the cynical man would be grinning at her predicament. Blushing some more, Seras could not help but think of what her master would do if her saw her like this. _He probably would berate me on how stupid I was for not sucking it up and dealing with the consequences of feeding. And then look at me with those eyes of his…_shivering despite the flush on her skin, Seras's eyes began to slip closed.

_He'd look at me, and see me all flushed and hot. _

Biting her lip, Seras experimentally rubbed her thighs together, cooing audibly at the pleasurable friction that resulted.

_He'd see me with those eyes of his, those hypnotic, beautiful eyes that go so well with his face, and he'd reach for me…_Seras's eyes slipped shut as she reached up to grasp at one of her breasts. She had not put on a bra after her shower, and her heavy, e-cup sized globes had hung freely underneath her shirt. As one hand reached for her breast, the other slid sensually down her hip stopping to rest at the junction between her thighs.

_Oh, he wouldn't be master then, oh no. He's a Prince. _

Seras gasped as her hand caressed her breast, the friction causing her back to arch off of the floor. The rough fabric scraped against her sensitive nipple, and she audibly moaned at the brief contact. Her other hand began to lazily move in circles, and move lower to where the fabric of her pants was starting to get damp.

"Oh…" Seras vocalized, the soft moan turning into a squeak as her hand brushed against her nub. Her eyes flew open for a few moments before slamming shut at the pleasure the fabric was causing.

_My prince…_ her brain mused. _He would be touching me like so…yes…_sighing happily; she surrendered herself to the fantasy.

_ Seras gasped as his hands roughly squeezed her breasts. "Please!" She cried out, her elbows roughly scraping against the stone she was leaning on. They were in plain view of the town below them. The balcony offered little to hide from the view, despite being high on the mountain as the town rested in the valley below. _

_ "No one shall see." A rough voice growled in her ear behind her as a lean, hard figure pressed into her back. "We are too high up for them to see plainly. All they will see is a small figure at best." His ministrations on her breasts continued as a gloved finger flicked at a hardened nipple. She squeaked at the action, and could feel the grin that he pressed to her neck. "What did I deserve to see this, little one?" the voice drawled, the grin growing wider against the soft, exposed skin._

_ "I…I…" Seras stammered, at a loss for words as the hands continued to knead her large bosom. _

_ "You wanted to please me." The voice finished._

_ "Yes…" Seras mewled, a rewarding caress of silky hair across her chin causing the mewl to climb upward in pitch._

_ "Then I am not pleased to see you like this." _

_ Seras blinked, not sure of what was said. "My lord?" She questioned, swallowing heavily as a hand moved from her breast down to her waist. _

_ "I said, I am not pleased to see you like this." As if to make his point, the hand at her waist tightened, glove-covered fingers digging painfully into the folds of her skirt. Seras gasped at the sensation, a wave of pleasure beginning to curl deep within her abdomen. _

_ "Then…" she licked her lips, unsure of how to continue. "Then how would my lord like to see me?" A deep rumble against her neck caused her eyelids to flutter shut, the ministrations of both hands beginning to unravel her mind. _

_ "I want to see you as you are." _

_ Her brow furrowed at the answer. "As I am?" _

_ "Open your eyes." _

_ Seras opened her eyes and expected to see the town below her, however what she saw was her own body, in her bloody room. She saw herself in the throes of pleasure, as hands roamed her body, caressing and teasing. But they were not her own hands – no – what she saw caused the coil of pleasure in her abdomen to clench so hard it was nearly painful. She was sitting in his lap, her hands clenching the fabric of his charcoal pants as he caressed her left breast with a white gloved hand. His right hand was between her legs, rubbing slowly at her fabric covered clit. Seras cried out in pleasure at watching the scene below her – and the very male form behind her pressed closer. She could feel him, every contour, and feel the pleasure that was below her as she continued to watch him play with her. _

_ "I see you." Was the low rumble that came from behind her, and all of a sudden she was falling. _

Seras jolted up from the floor, panting heavily. _What the hell just happened?_ She slowly removed her hand from between her legs, wincing at how damp the fabric had become. Trying to calm her unnecessary breathing, Seras glanced about her macabre room as she tried to make sense on what had just happened in her fantasy. There was no way that could have been real. Her master would not intrude like that – not him! Closing her eyes, Seras took a deep breath. It had all seemed real due to the after effects of the feeding. Yes, that was all. As if to solidify her decision, Seras raised her arm, and the fabric slid harmlessly across her skin.

"See? There. All better." Seras assured herself out loud, despite the quiver in her voice. "Nothing more than a dream. A very vivid dream, but a dream." Taking another deep breath, Seras rose from her position on the floor.

"And now I need another shower."

Please be kind and review/rewind!

SUB NOTES:

Voivode - it is a term for warlord, or ruler in the Limba Romana language that Dracula would have spoken in the time period.

Dracul-a : This also refers to the language. Dracul means Dragon or Devil, the a suffix means son. So, put the two together and you get Son of Dragon/Devil.


End file.
